Chapter 560: Trouble
October 18th, evening.

Hexi Qin sent someone to deliver a letter to Luo Tianjin, saying that Qin Ming would arrive in Luoyang City in three days. This letter made Luo Tianjin feel ominous, so he summoned everyone to the central hall to discuss countermeasures.

"Qin Ming said in the letter that he was here to pay a special visit to the new leader of the martial arts world." Luo Tianjin held the letter between his fingers, looked around at everyone, and said with a hint of meaning, "By the way, I want to ask about the theft of 'Xuan Shui Volume 2'. How is our investigation going?"

Was it a coincidence or intentional? When Luo Tianjin said the last sentence, his eyes fell squarely on Qin Ku.

This action made Liu Xunyi and Xunzhen, who were sitting opposite them, feel nervous.

"Qin Ming's intentions are not good." Luo Tianjin said with a half-smile, "It seems that he has some intention of... calling on the enemy to punish him. Haha..."

At this moment, everyone had their own speculations about Qin Ming's purpose, so they looked at each other and no one answered for a long time.

"Why did he not come earlier or later, but appeared at this critical moment? Is it really a coincidence?" Luo Tianjin's words were profound and made people think a lot.

"Qin Tianjiu died not long ago, and the Qin family was seriously injured. Qin Ming would not be so bold." Yan Bugui said, "I guess there must be someone behind him instigating him."

"Who?"

"Except for Jin Fuyu, I can't think of another person." Huang Yulang said firmly, "This matter is definitely not as simple as it seems on the surface."

"Qin Tianjiu died at the hands of Qin Ku, and Qin Ku was from the Xianwang Mansion..." Luo Tianjin said thoughtfully, "Qin Ming should hate me to the core, how could he be so kind as to visit me?"

"In my opinion, Qin Ming's trip has two purposes," Deng Changchuan said thoughtfully, "either to inquire about the 'Xuan Shui Xia Juan', or to avenge Qin Tianjiu."

"Besides this, there is another possibility." Murong Bai added, "Not long ago, we spread the news that the Palace Master wanted to divide the 'Heaven and Earth Xuanhuang' into four sects, intending to test the reactions of various sects. Qin Ming came uninvited, perhaps because he was dissatisfied with the Palace Master's inclusion of the Hexi Qin Clan into the Xuan Clan, so he came to argue."

"Qin Ku." Luo Tianjin ignored everyone's speculation and asked Qin Ku, "You and Qin Ming are from the same lineage, so you must know more about him than we do, so I want to hear your opinion."

Qin Ku was stunned, and a trace of resentment gradually emerged on his face. He said with contempt: "This person is despicable and shameless, greedy and selfish. He will do anything to achieve his goals. He is capable of doing anything unscrupulous..."

"Wait!" Xie Xuan interrupted, "The Palace Master wants to hear opinions, not complaints."

"This is not a complaint, it's the truth." Qin Ku defended, "Master Yan Si and Master Huang Liu are right. Qin Ming is both mean and cunning. He always likes to bully the weak. He will never fight against the strong with the weak. Therefore, I assert that he does not have the courage to take the initiative to cause trouble for the Xianwang Mansion. There must be someone behind him instigating him. As for his purpose... it should not be to avenge Qin Tianjiu or oppose the division of clan ranks, but to inquire about the whereabouts of "Xuanshui Volume 2."

When Qin Ku mentioned "Xuan Shui Volume 2", there was not the slightest bit of strangeness in his expression, as if this matter had nothing to do with him.

Seeing this scene, Liu Xunyi and Xunzhen's anxious hearts immediately felt much more at ease.

Xunzhen is worried that Qin Ku will give him away, while Liu Xunyi is worried that Xunzhen and she will be destroyed and will transfer Luo Tianjin's dissatisfaction with her to herself.

Therefore, neither of them wanted Luo Tianjin to trace the "Xuan Shui Xia Volume" from Qin Ku, so as to avoid a fire in the city gate and affect innocent people.

Facing Qin Ku's eloquent talk, Luo Tianjin asked with interest: "Why do you think so?"

"First, the rules of the martial arts conference are very clear. Life and death on the sword arena are left to fate. No one can take revenge in the future. Qin Ming is not a fool. He will never risk the world's condemnation and give people a chance to criticize him." Qin Ku said jokingly, "Qin Ming and Qin Tianjiu are of the same kind. The two of them are in cahoots. In the final analysis, they are just using each other. Therefore, Qin Ming may not be sad that Qin Tianjiu was cut into pieces. Even if he is sad, it is just the grief of the rabbit. Second, we spread the news of the division of the clan, and no one has opposed it until now. How could Qin Ming be so stupid as to show up? There is a saying that 'a tree that stands out in the forest will be destroyed by the wind'. It is such a simple truth that Qin Ming cannot be unaware of it."

"Ha ha……"

Qin Ku's words made Luo Tianjin laugh out loud and nod repeatedly.

"Everyone, did you hear all of this?" Luo Tianjin said, "After all, they are uncle and nephew, and I see things much more clearly than you do."

"You are too kind, Lord." Qin Ku smiled and said, "Qin Ming is good at calculating. Since he dared to come to Luoyang City, he must have calculated that Lord would not dare to touch him. There is only one reason, that is, Lord is in the wrong and does not want to give others a handle. As for the matter of 'Xuan Shui Xia Juan', I also know a little bit, so..."

"Right now, the population roster and the promotion of the clan level are imminent, and I am very busy. I don't have time to delay with him." Luo Tianjin thought, "In your opinion, how should I prevaricate?"

"This..." Qin Ku frowned and smacked his lips repeatedly. "The most worrying thing is that they refuse to leave. If Jin Fuyu is behind Qin Ming, they must have a trick up their sleeve. In my opinion, instead of racking our brains to drive him away, it is better to use static to slow down the movement and see what tricks they are up to. Then, we can stop them when they come. "

Having said this, Qin Ku showed a wicked smile on his face, and added: "Of course, if the mansion master does not care about the world's eyes, he can also beat him away with a stick, or refuse to let him in."

"How dare you! This is sheer nonsense!" Xie Xuan said in a deep voice, "The mansion master is the leader of the martial arts world. How can he beat up a fellow martial artist with a stick? A visitor is a guest. We cannot refuse him entry. Instead, we should be a good host and treat him with courtesy. This is the only way to show the mansion master's style and generosity."

"That's right!" Yan Bugui agreed, "Qin Ming is not an unknown person. He is the head of the Hexi Qin family and has a very high reputation in the martial arts world. If we neglect him, I am afraid we will be criticized by heroes all over the world. This move will be extremely detrimental to the reputation of the mansion master."

From beginning to end, Luo Tianjin's eyes were fixed on Qin Ku, as if he was lost in thought. As for the chattering of the crowd, he did not react at all.

"Palace Master, you..."

"Ai Mi...how have you been doing these past few days?" Before Xie Xuan could ask, Luo Tianjin suddenly asked, "Is there anything unusual?"

"This woman is really rare in the world." Xie Xuan recalled Ai Mi and couldn't help shaking his head and smiling bitterly. "Oh? What do you mean?"

"We followed the Lord's wishes and placed her in the young master's courtyard as a maid, and assigned all the dirty and tiring work to her. We wanted to take this opportunity to teach her a lesson, so that she would give up and confess the secret about Jin Fuyu to us. But unexpectedly, she not only did not cry at all, but agreed happily. Even though she was handcuffed and shackled, she still worked hard and diligently, and took care of all the chores in the young master's courtyard neatly and cleanly. When the lady saw her, she also praised her for being down-to-earth and careful, and ordered people to remove her shackles."

"Remove the shackles? Be careful that she doesn't run away." Yan Bugui reminded.

"Don't worry, our people are watching her day and night, she has nowhere to escape," Xie Xuan said with a smile, "What's more, she is very clear about her situation. If she escapes without permission, she will be the one in trouble."

Luo Tianjin pondered and said, "Pass the order down. From now on, the Xianwang Mansion will strengthen the security. Anyone entering or leaving will be checked repeatedly. I don't want Li Jia's scandal to happen again."

"As ordered."

"Also, send someone to keep an eye on the city. If you find any news about Qin Ming, report back to me immediately."

"Yes."

"in addition……"

"Report!"

Just as Luo Tianjin was discussing countermeasures with everyone in full swing, a hurried report suddenly came from outside the hall.

Immediately afterwards, a disciple from the Xianwang Mansion, holding a carrier pigeon in his hand, walked into the central hall in a hurry. Under the astonished gaze of everyone, he knelt down in front of Luo Tianjin with a plop.

Seeing this, Luo Tianjin hesitated for a moment, and suddenly his eyes focused, as if he had anticipated something?
"Report to the Palace Master..."

"Quick! Bring the pigeon!"

Following Luo Tianjin's urging, Xie Xuan quickly rushed to the front of the disciple, snatched the pigeon without thinking, took out the note, and walked towards Luo Tianjin.

At this moment, everyone in the hall looked confused and full of doubts.

No one understood why Luo Tianjin was so interested in a carrier pigeon. At the same time, they became more and more curious about where the carrier pigeon came from, who sent it, and what was in the letter?
However, they had to keep all their doubts in their hearts because Luo Tianjin had no intention of explaining to them.

Taking the note hurriedly, Luo Tianjin's heartbeat accelerated sharply, his face became more nervous, and his hands trembled uncontrollably.

Under the astonished and curious gazes of the crowd, Luo Tianjin opened the note tremblingly, frowned, and looked at it intently.

In an instant, his pupils suddenly contracted and his eyes became shocked.

Doubt, contemplation, surprise, disbelief... thousands of thoughts came one after another, and Luo Tianjin's face changed color.

Finally, an irrepressible rage instantly swept through his body, causing him to tremble all over and his fists to clench tightly, making a "crackling" sound.

Luo Tianjin's strong reaction immediately made those who didn't know the truth hold their breath and cover their faces in horror.

"Master of the Palace..."

"shut up!"

With a loud shout, Luo Tianjin suddenly stood up, clenched the note tightly in his right hand, and walked out of the hall in anger.

Seeing this, everyone stood up to see him off. But Luo Tianjin didn't say a word, didn't even look at them, and walked away from the hall with a sullen face and big strides, without looking back.

"Rumble, click!"

Suddenly, a loud thunderclap sounded in the sky without any reason, which frightened the people of Luoyang and shocked everyone in the Prince Xian’s Mansion.

Then, a violent wind suddenly arose and raged mercilessly, with sand and rocks flying everywhere and the sky darkening.

The afterglow of the setting sun was completely blocked by dark clouds in the blink of an eye, and everything in the world seemed to become extremely dim in an instant, until it was as black as ink.

At this moment, it seemed as if the sky was falling and the earth was collapsing, and the end of the world was approaching.

……

(End of this chapter)